Press Play with Madeleine Brand: California case: free speech v. abortion rightsCrisis pregnancy centers are generally run by pro-life groups that aim to convince pregnant women not to get abortions. A California law requires that employees tell their clients that the state offers free and low-cost abortions and other family planning services. Now a group of these centers is arguing that the law violates their freedom of speech.

UnFictionalUnbelievably true stories of chance encounters that changed the world. A pair of mail-order shoes that led to the film The Outsiders. A secret road to a California paradise. The day LA and smog first met. Stories that will stick in your head like a memory. It’s UnFictional, hosted by Bob Carlson.

The DocumentThe Document is a new kind of mash-up between documentaries and radio. It goes beyond clips and interviews, mining great stories from the raw footage of documentaries present, past and in-progress. A new episode is available every other Wednesday on iTunes and wherever fine podcasts are downloaded.

To the PointA weekly reality-check on the issues Americans care about most. Host Warren Olney draws on his decades of experience to explore the people and issues shaping – and disrupting - our world. How did everything change so fast? Where are we headed? The conversations are informal, edgy and always informative. If Warren's asking, you want to know the answer.

Ferguson and L.A., the Rise of Superbugs, and Elephants Leaving the Circus

Today, we start with a two-part look at the Department of Justice report on Ferguson, MO, released yesterday: First, an in-depth look at the civil rights abuses it details, and then a comparison to L.A.’s history of racism in law enforcement.

FROM THIS EPISODE

We start with a two-part look at the Department of Justice report on Ferguson, MO, released yesterday. First, an in-depth look at the civil rights abuses it details, and then a comparison to L.A.’s history of racism in law enforcement. Next, in our weekly web roundup, CHAPPiE and the unlikely screen debut of Die Antwoord. Then, a new superbug outbreak happened this week at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in L.A. Dr. Ezekiel Emanuel talks to Madeleine about the rise of superbugs and why we need to develop new antibiotics to fight them. And finally, Ringling Brothers is phasing elephants out of its circus act. Why?

A federal report released yesterday paints a detailed and disturbing picture of institutional racism inside the criminal justice system in Ferguson, MO. According to the Department of Justice, blacks made up 67% of Ferguson’s population between 2012 and 2014, but represented 93% of arrests and 85% of traffic stops; and that’s just one of many examples of civil rights abuses in the report. But what are the stories behind those numbers? We take an in-depth look, and then turn to our own history of racism in policing here in Los Angeles. How are the two cities similar, and different?

South African music duo Die Antwoord has gone from viral music video sensation to movie stars, starting tomorrow. Ninja and Yolandi of Die Antwoord star in the movie CHAPPiE, which comes out Friday. We trace the rise of Die Antwoord as part of our regular web roundup today.

There’s a lot of concern these days about antibiotics, and whether they’re losing effectiveness. Yesterday, L.A.’s Cedars-Sinai Medical Center said four patients there have been infected with a superbug. That’s an antibiotic-resistant bacteria that can cause deadly infections. Sixty-eight more people may have been exposed. The news came on the heels of a similar outbreak at UCLA, where two people died and up to 180 patients might’ve been exposed. Some 23,000 people die every year from superbug infections. So what’s behind this problem, and can we do anything about it?

Guests:Ezekiel Emanuel, National Institutes of Health; author, “Prescription for the Future: The Twelve Transformational Practices of Highly Effective Medical Organizations.”

The Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey Circus have announced they’re going to phase out elephants from their shows by 2018. Elephants have been an iconic part of the circus for more than 100 years, and it’s a little hard to imagine Ringling Brothers without them. It also seemed, only recently, that they weren’t going anywhere: just a year ago, Ringling won a $16 million settlement against animal rights groups who claimed they were mistreating the animals. So what happened since to prompt this change?